Automobile elevating jack



Oct. 9, 1923. l 1,470,581 H.E.DUFFY AUTOMOBILE ELEVATING JACK Filed April 17. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet l BYWf/vv ATTRNE Y Oct. 9 1923. EAWLSS H. E, DUFFY AUTOMOBILE ELEVATING JACK Filed Abril 17. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 35 f ,l v 350 ATTRIVEY Patented Got. 9, 1923.

UNITED STATES g 1,470,581 PATENT Ormes.

HARRY n DUFFY, OF s'r. PAUL, MINNESOTA, AssreNoR or FIVE oNnHUNnnnnrns To ANNA r. JANInson, or starry EYE, MINNESOTA, AND :FOUR-Temes 'ro raul.

E. RICK, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

AUTOMOBILE nLEvATrNG JACK. y

Application :tiled April. 17, 1922.' Serial No. 554,001.

To all tf1/wm t may concer/1i.'

Be it known that I, HARRY E. DUFFY, ay citizen of the United States, residingr at St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State oi Minnesota, have invented anew and usei'ul Automobile Elevating Jack, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to devices for elevating vehicles of all; kinds, particularly automobiles, for the purpose ot making them easily accessible for repairing or demonstration purposes.

The objecty of the invention is to provide. a device readily installed in the iioor of a garage or other building, the parts of said device being so constructed that when not in use they are hidden from view and covered in such a manner that automobiles may be driven over it the same as the rest ol the licor in such building.

ln the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top view or" the device, some parts being broken away to expose the mechanism.

Fig. 2 is a partly'sectional side elevation about as on line 2-2 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation on line 3-3 `in Fig. 1. .l

Fig. l is an end elevationy looking as from lett to right in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional elevation as on line 5-5 in Fig. 1, disclosing mainly the brake of my device.

Referring to the drawing by reference numerals, 6 is an elongated f rectangular trame preferably made -of structural iron, and adapted to be installed below the floor level 7 of a garage in such a manner that the top of its hinged cover sections 8, is level with the floor line, said covers forming practically an unbroken surface level with the rest ot' Jthe garage floor. 1Within said frame and near each end of it l provide an integral cross frame consisting of two transversely arranged spaced members 9 in which are journaled a number of' spaced shafts 10 earrying a train of gears 11 the outer ones oi which engage` the teeth 12a of a vertically arranged rack post 12 movable vertically in hollow depending casings 13.

A long shaft 10a extending longitudinally through the entire frame and having corresponding gears 11 in the inner frames 9 or lowered. simultaneously.

trame 1st and between said bearings I key on said shafta brake drum 17 and a gear 18. A hand lever 19 pivotally ren gaging the shaft 10a' and located adjacent the said gear 18 isprovided with a finger latch 2O operating a ratchet pawl 21 toenf gage the teeth of the gear 18. The lever .normally projects vertically above the pit 15 through a slot in a floor` plate (not shown) covering said pit. Another vertically arranged lever 22 pivotally secured on a stub shaft 23 rotating vin bearings 2eon the frame 14 and adjacent brake drum 1T is adapted to rock a bellV crank2l pivotallyl secured `on the same shaft (see Fig. 5). The arms or' the bell crank 25 are connected by pins 26 to the opposite ends of a brake band 27 adapted tofcontact with the outer surface of the brake drum 17. Lever 22 is also provided with a finger latch 2O operating a pawl 21 which engages a toothedsegment 28 secured as at 28FL on frame 14 and` concentric with shaft 23. By manipulating lever 19 one way its gear 1.8 and the shaft 10d rotates the trains of gears 11 in a direction which causes all four rack posts to be raised, A small bell crank 30 (see. Fig. l) mounted on shaft 23 in the small frame has one arm projecting up through the iioor plate above frame 14; and its end iiattenedto form a toot pedal 30a, its other arm 31 being hook-shaped to engage the teeth of gear 18. A pin 32 in the latter arm is engaged by a flat spring 33 secured in the adjacent bearing 24s, said spring tending at all times to keep said hooked arm in engagement with the teeth of the gear. It will be readily 'seen that when lever 19 is used to rotate gear 18 in direction of arrow 34k (Fig. 4C) to raise the four rack-posts 12 the hooked arm 31 will hold the gear 18, and also the posts 12, while the lever 19 is used to take another stroke to raise the posts further. Each post 12 projectsv through a hole 12a inthe main frame cover 8 andv I provide for it a removable cap 35 with a socket 3521 on its under side to lit the top of the post and a horizontal top surface. These caps are adapted to engage the frame members 36 of an automobile or other vehicle` andas all the caps are on the same horizontalbe folded down into pit below the looi" level, the former lever having enough freedom to do this but the latter lever cannot be folded down until one of the brake band pins 26 on the bell crank have been withdrawn thus disconnecting the brake band and permitting leve-r 22 to be swung down into the pit. out ot' the Way.

The caps may be offset and have tianges 35h, said oliiset being horizontal and permitting the. caps to beA adjusted so that antonio bile Yframes of variouswidths may be engagged. y 4

The operation of my device being fully disclosed in the above description it is only necessary to add that in the use of my device no part of an auto or other vehicle need be clamped or secured to it in any manner, the vehicle simply being raised by the tour posts to any desired height. and any person may walk under it to make repairs, inspections, etc. The advantage of using my device or displaying motor cars is obvious.

38 is a vertical row of holes in each of the rack posts and 38 is a. pin provided to be put in the hole. nearest the trame cover to prevent the posts from accidentally coming down.

That I claim is:

l. In a device ot` the kind described7 a rectangular, horizontally arranged frame With cover sections adapted to be installed below the Hoor line of a building withits. cover in plane with said floor, number of depending hollow columns integral with said trame and a vertically slid able post within each column, means for raising and lowering said posts simultaneously and means removably secured on the top ends of said posts for engaging the under side of a vehicle, said posts having each on its inner side a toothed rack;

trains or gears `transversely arranged with` in the main trame, a. train it'or each pair of oppositely arranged posts, the outer gears of each t-rain meshing with the rack of its adjoining slidable oost.

'2. The structure specified in claim l, said raising and lowering means comprising a longitudinally arranged main shaft keyed to the corresponding gear of each train of gears and extending to a secondary Jframe and journaled therein, and means Within said secondary frame ior rotating said main shaft to rotate the trains of gears and raise the posts sin'iultaneously.

3. The structure speciiied in claim 2, and a brake on said shaft within the secondary iframe tor retarding the downward movement` ot the posts.

- 4. The structure speciiied in claim 3, said means; :tor rotating the main shal't comprising a. gear keyed thereon, a lever on the shaft adjacent the gear, means on the lever for engaging the teeth of the gear and locking means pivotally mounted adjacent t-he gear and engaging the latter to hold the lifting posts at any desired height.

In testimony whereof I atliX my signature.

HARRY E. DUFFY. 

